Sport Confidential: Johnathan Thurston and Buddy Franklin take NYC by storm as part of the Indigenous Marathon Project
Two of Australia’s sporting greats have added another medal to their loaded collections, with Johnathan Thurston and Buddy Franklin taking to New York for the Indigenous Marathon Project.
Brisbane coach Michael Maguire has moved to assure teenage sensation Coby Black he has a future at the club in the wake of rival playmaker Jonah Pezet signing with the Broncos.
Black will report for Broncos training next week facing the most critical pre-season of his fledgling career as the battle for playmaking positions intensifies at Red Hill in 2026.
The Broncos last week confirmed the signing of Storm sensation Pezet, who will link with Brisbane in 2027 via a 12-month stint with the Eels next year.
Meanwhile, Brisbane have also signed Cowboys halfback Tom Duffy, who started his new chapter at the Broncos on Monday, providing another competitive threat to the emerging Black.
Black has been groomed as Adam Reynolds’ successor for the past two years, but he is off-contract at the end of 2026, just prior to the arrival of Pezet, who is eyeing off the Broncos No.7 jumper.
Pezet wouldn’t be walking away from the Storm to play reserve grade at the Broncos, but Maguire dismissed suggestions he has lost faith in Black, who represented the Queensland under-19s this year.
“I haven’t given up on Coby at all,” Maguire said.
“We have signed Johan Pezet but that’s in 12 months time when he comes into the equation.
“For Tom (Duffy) and Coby, they are on our books this season and Coby has had a good 12 months of development.
“I have been really pleased with how Coby is developing and with Tom Duffy coming in, he will add to the strengths of our halves.
“I have two young halves who are hungry to come in and get better.
“I will be watching Coby and Tom closely. They are the future. As we showed this year, you need depth to be able to succeed and those two guys are definitely two live options on our roster.”
The Broncos have put a lot of time and effort into Black.
The 19-year-old scored 46 points last year for Burleigh in a 130-0 thrashing of Wide Bay in the Mal Meninga Cup before progressing to the Queensland Cup this season, where he played 16 games for feeder club Souths Logan.
Black kicked the winning field goal for the Queensland under-19s this season and while Pezet is rated a future NRL superstar, Maguire says the No.7 jumper is wide open if Reynolds retires next year.
Maguire is also wary of throwing Black, who turns 20 next March, into the NRL furnace too soon.
“I know we have got Jonah but at the end of the day, you need to have depth with your spine,” he said.
“Coby is a great young kid and he’s a few years younger than Jonah.
“He has been a big part of the Broncos over the last two years and he has a big pre-season ahead of him.
“There is a great opportunity in front of him this season.
“He is a genuine talent, but it takes time to really develop as a senior half in our game.
“He has been in a really good spot where he has been able to be with ‘Hunty’ (Ben Hunt) and ‘Reyno’ and watch their development.
“Coby has learnt a lot from those two and he has to learn the pressures of playmaking and the different aspects of controlling a game. We are still going through that phase with him.
“Young halves can get thrown in too early and I’m conscious of that.
“I’m really pleased with his progress and it takes depth to bring the best out of everyone.”
THURSTON’S MARATHON EFFORT
The running boom for NRL legend Johnathan Thurston and AFL great Buddy Franklin continues.
The star duo completed another sporting milestone last weekend when Thurston and Franklin completed their first ever 42.195km run at the New York Marathon.
The high-profile pair headed to the US as part of the Indigenous marathon running project after running a half-marathon in July at the Gold Coast Marathon race weekend.
Thurston finished in a creditable time of 3 hours and 43 minutes, six minutes ahead of Franklin, who started well before running out of steam to post 3 hours and 49 minutes.
Nevertheless, it was a particularly impressive effort from the hulking Franklin, who tipped the scales at 102kg in his playing days at the Swans.
“Hardest thing I’ve ever done,” Franklin said after crossing the finish line.
On the same day, esteemed News Corp journalist Travis Meyn completed his first Noosa Triathlon in 2 hours and 55 minutes. Meyn refused to confirm speculation he spent his entire year’s salary on a state-of-the-art carbon fiber bike.
REYNOLDS INC HITS CHINA
Adam Reynolds Inc is going global.
The Reynolds business empire is growing by the day with the Broncos skipper embarking on a trip to China this week to ramp up his burgeoning Ayer fashion label.
Former Super League boss John Ribot famously declared rugby league would take off in China and Reynolds is flying the NRL flag in the world’s second most populous nation.
But this was no holiday. The Broncos skipper is so serious about his fashion label that Reynolds personally flew to China to meet with a range of manufacturers and suppliers to ensure a quality product.
As seen in these images, Reynolds was hands on with the process, running his eye over fabrics and discussing deals with Chinese firms.
Pronounced ‘A-R’, like his initials, Reynolds paraded his range of clothing in the wake of Brisbane’s premiership win and he is already kicking goals with his fledgling array of items.
It is understood the Broncos halfback sold thousands of dollars of stock within hours of going public with his Ayer products, which include socks, casual shirts and more fashionable garments.
“I intend to dabble in fashion,” Reynolds said in his newly-released book On My Own Terms.
“I have even kickstarted my own brand, Ayer, which means ‘yesterday’ in Spanish, and obviously includes my initials.
“For a man with so many tattoos, you might be wondering why I’d be promoting anything that covers most of them up.
“But I never thought I’d enjoy the creative process as much as I have.”
Reynolds’ book hasn’t been a smash hit with everyone with teammate Billy Walters fingered as the Broncos player who leaked news of his dad’s sacking as Brisbane coach to the skipper.
Walters gave Reynolds a light-hearted uppercut for revealing the details of Kevvie’s dismissal.
“My younger brother actually told me because he was home with Kev,” Walters said.
“I was pretty ‘devo’ (devastated), so I called Reyno straight away because he was our captain. By the time I had hung up with Reyno, Kev called me 30 seconds later and said, ‘Don’t tell anyone yet’, but unfortunately I told Reyno.
“He will probably sell a million books now.”
NAS COLD ON WAHS
NRL clubs continue to pursue Nelson Asofa-Solomona.
Sport Confidential understands the Warriors are the latest club to make a formal play for the New Zealand Test star ahead of Sunday’s Pacific Championships final against Samoa in Sydney.
Asofa-Solomona severed ties with the Storm in the wake of their grand final loss to the Broncos and initially fielded two offers, including one from the Parramatta Eels.
Now the Warriors have entered the equation. The ‘Wahs’ were keen to bring the former Storm enforcer back home to New Zealand, but it’s understood the 29-year-old has no desire to return to the NRL next season.
Asofa-Solomona has been overlooked by the Kiwis for the Samoa showdown at Parramatta’s CommBank Stadium and has almost certainly played his final game of rugby league.
The 130kg giant is weighing up a move to professional boxing and is more likely to jump in the ring than don a Warriors or Eels jumper.
MENINGA GRINS AND BEARS IT
NRL Immortal Mal Meninga has rubbished rumours he is getting cold feet about coaching the Perth Bears in 2027.
Meninga was buffeted by speculation he might reconsider taking charge of the NRL’s 18th team, especially after the integrity scandal involving his long-time associate Ezra Howe.
Meninga played a key role in delivering Howe to the Titans as recruitment boss, a position he was also expected to take up at the Bears as part of the Queensland Origin legend’s front office in Perth.
But Howe’s hopes were scuppered after explosive allegations he built a hit list of Bears recruits while still working for the Titans, leading to the appointment of Dane Campbell as the Bears’ inaugural recruitment boss.
Sport Confidential understands Meninga was privately disappointed with the treatment of Howe, but the 65-year-old insists he is committed to the Bears for their return to the big league.
Meninga has been embarking on some long-haul flights to Perth from his home in Canberra to help set-up infrastructure for the Bears on WA soil.
“I’m really happy,” he said.
“Every time I come here, I get more settled. You’re always thinking about the pros and cons. This is a real challenge. Sometimes you get that self-doubt. In reality we are stepping out of our comfort zone. I embrace it. I love that pressure. I keep going. So I’ll just keep walking forward - that’s what a bear does. I mean that’s the North Sydney way. They don’t back down. So that’s where I’m at with my presence over here.”
Meninga last coached in the NRL with Canberra in 2001, but says his successful stints with the Queensland and Australia teams have steeled him for the Bears post.
“I believe I’m ripe for the job,” he said. “I believe in myself and I believe in the systems that I have created over those years.
“I learnt lessons when I was with the Raiders. It was a huge learning curve for me, I found out how I function, so that’s a bonus and plus for me.
“But I also understand it’s not about me, it’s about everyone. That’s what I learnt in my time with those great Queensland and Australian teams.”
MITCH PACKS A PUNCH
Rising Australian boxing star Mitchell Leek will continue his climb up the rankings when the boom Melbourne middleweight returns to the ring next month.
Leek is unbeaten in 12 fights and the hard-punching Victorian will take on veteran Rivan Cesaire (17-5-1) at Flemington’s Melbourne Pavilion on December 6.
Cesaire has previously fought Jeff Horn twice, losing by TKO to ‘The Hornet’ in 2014, and his experience will test Leek, who is quietly amassing a formidable record.
The 25-year-old is rated a world-title prospect and eventually wants domestic blockbusters against Brock Jarvis, Michael Zerafa and Nikita Tszyu.
“This fight against Rivan is such an exciting fight,” Leek said.
“He’s a veteran of the sport that currently has much bigger accolades than I do in the sport.
“He has fought much higher calibre opponents than I have so far, so this is a really big step in my career and a really great learning curve for me.
“My team at Team Ellis and I are quite aware this is a big step up, it’s a dangerous fight to take as Rivan has fought the best of the best in Australia like Jeff Horn.
“But these are the fights I need now to be elevating my career to the next level again.
“He’s coming off six straight wins so I have to be at my best on December 6.”
TITANIC MOVE FOR BAI
New Gold Coast coach Josh Hannay says the days of the Titans losing their best young kids are over as the club looks to upgrade boom forward Cooper Bai.
The son of Storm and Gold Coast wing great Marcus Bai, the Queensland under-19s star is currently on a development deal, which expires at the end of 2026.
Bai has been linked with the Roosters, Storm and Broncos, but the Titans have opened talks to keep one of Gold Coast’s most promising players on their books for 2027 and beyond.
Bai, who celebrated his 19th birthday on Wednesday, made his NRL debut in the final round against the Wests Tigers and Hannay insists the explosive forward is going nowhere.
“Cooper is critically important to our future,” he said.
“Anyone in our game, particularly in south-east Queensland, was well aware of his reputation as a kid coming up.
“Then we saw what he was able to do in his debut in the last game of the season.
“He is representative of the kids we want to keep at this club.”
Hannay has also been impressed by Bai’s attitude away from the training paddock.
“The world is at his feet,” he said.
“Not just because of what is capable of as a player, but he is one of the most mature 19-year-olds you will ever find.
“He is driven away from football, he is studying criminology, so there is a very smart, measured and mature man behind the footballer and that gives us great confidence.
“He has all the attributes of being a player that can have a long, sustained and successful career in this game at the Titans.”
BRONCOS SUNNY SIDE UP
Brisbane’s football department embarked on a Sunshine Coast getaway as they begin plotting the club’s title defence in 2026.
Broncos coach Michael Maguire is already back at work and presided over a planning session last week at Noosa with his team of assistants, including Ben Te’o, Trent Barrett and Matt Ballin, and CEO Dave Donaghy.
The Broncos have been installed as title favourites by bookmakers and Maguire has added former Melbourne Demons AFL sports scientist Nick Murray to his team in his bid to clinch back-to-back premierships next season.
Maguire said the Noosa visit was no surfing holiday.
“Our trip away was great,” he said. “I had a lot of quality time with my staff up there, we were locked away up there just planning really.
“We have signed a couple of sports scientists but we are still pretty stable with our team of assistants.
“We are at a different starting point this year to where we were this time last year when we came together for the first time (following the departure of Kevin Walters).
“It’s good to see the growth of my staff and how we’re developing going into the 2026 season.”
PANGAI JR’S SUPER LEAGUE SPAT
Souths coach Wayne Bennett has ruled out a lifeline for Tevita Pangai Jr after his former protege’s move to play under Sam Burgess at Warrington fell through.
Pangai Jr sensationally reneged on his Warrington deal last Friday after learning his former coach at Catalans, Steve McNamara, would be joining the Wolves in 2026.
Pangai Jr signed a one-year deal with the Wolves in July, three months before Burgess hired McNamara, who parted ways with French club Catalans in May.
It is understood McNamara and Pangai Jr did not see eye to eye at Catalans. The former Broncos, Dolphins and Bulldogs forward had no desire to work with McNamara at Warrington.
The 29-year-old was due to join the Wolves for pre-season but asked for a release from Burgess, who agreed to sever ties before Pangai Jr played a single minute for the club.
The former NSW Origin enforcer, who played 147 NRL games, will not return to Catalans and is weighing up his future for 2026.
Bennett signed Pangai Jr at the Dolphins last year and was keen to bring him to Souths, only for the move to collapse due to salary-cap pressures at the Rabbitohs, forcing the ex-Tongan Test enforcer to the Super League.
However, Bennett has moved on and won’t be making a fresh play for the enigmatic forward.
Pangai Jr had interest from French rugby clubs before his decision to sign with Warrington, while he could attract interest from NRL newcomers Perth and Papua New Guinea, who enter the big league in 2027 and 2028.
Perth coach Mal Meninga officially entered the player market last Saturday and he could consider Pangai Jr, who will be 30 when the Bears return to the NRL.
Warrington confirmed Pangai Jr would not play under Burgess in 2026.
“While we are disappointed, the club accepts his decision,” a Wolves statement said.
“We remain committed to building a squad of players who are fully invested in the club and its ambitions.
“We wish Tevita the very best in his future endeavours.”
More Coverage
Originally published as Sport Confidential: Johnathan Thurston and Buddy Franklin take NYC by storm as part of the Indigenous Marathon Project
Benji set to make call on future amid Tigers boardroom chaos
